Last week, Apple again repeated its claim that the iPhone and iPod Touch are capable of filling the netbook niche. They also claimed that netbooks can barely be called personal computers. Both of these statements are complete and utter nonsense, but instead of writing down some high-level definition of what a netbook is, I decided to simply write down all the things I do with my netbook that the iPhone/iPod Touch cannot do to make the difference between the two that much more tangible.

Laptops are big, heavy computers that are portable... just. They don't have anywhere near the processing power or flexibility of a desktop computer. Before netbooks came along, if you wanted true power and portability you needed a heavy desktop and a heavy laptop.

Netbooks are small and light computers that are very portable; you can carry one with one hand no problems. They don't have much processing power, but their portability makes up for it. They are not going to replace your desktop computer, but it makes more sense to have a heavy desktop and a light netbook, than a heavy desktop and a not-quite-so-heavy laptop that doesn't really replace your desktop anyway.

My Amilo Pro is not a netbook but it's really portable with a 12" screen. I love it. I don't need a netbook.

So I do see your point when you are talking about 15" laptops and bigger. But you have to remember that there are laptops that are small as well.

As far as I am concerned netbooks are laptops. And laptops come in all sizes. I know friends that buy 17" laptops and skip the desktop. They don't want to carry the laptop outside, they just want to be able to move it into different rooms within the apartment.

I prefer 12" since it's big enough for a good resolution without the text being too small, the keyboard is big enough for my fat fingers but it's small enough for me to carry in one hand.